Lord’s Library contributor Bill Furioso offers a repentance meaning in the Bible with definition. Check out his ministry At Christ’s Table for additional Bible studies and resources. Lord’s Library’s Ministry Leaders Series is a collection of contributed articles written by ministry leaders on key Christian topics.
Acts 2:37: “Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?”
Acts 2:38: “Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”
Acts 2:39: “For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.”
Acts 2:40: “And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation.”
Acts 2:41: “Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.”
Acts 2:42: “And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.”
Acts 2:43: “And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.”
Acts 2:44: “And all that believed were together, and had all things common;”
Acts 2:45: “And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.”
Acts 2:46: “And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,”
Acts 2:47: “Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.”
This Scripture passage is the conclusion of the sermon, which the apostle Peter preached in Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost – the day, which is commonly, held to be the birthday of the Christian Church. At that time, Christianity and its adherents – the Church – was known simply as “The Way” (See Acts 9:2, 18:25, 19:9, 24:14, 22):
- Acts 9:2: “And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem.”
- Acts 18:25: “This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John.”
- Acts 19:9: “But when divers were hardened, and believed not, but spake evil of that way before the multitude, he departed from them, and separated the disciples, disputing daily in the school of one Tyrannus.”
- Acts 19:23: “And the same time there arose no small stir about that way.”
- Acts 22:4: “And I persecuted this way unto the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women.”
- Acts 24:14: “But this I confess unto thee, that after the way which they call heresy, so worship I the God of my fathers, believing all things which are written in the law and in the prophets:”
- Acts 24:22: “And when Felix heard these things, having more perfect knowledge of that way, he deferred them, and said, When Lysias the chief captain shall come down, I will know the uttermost of your matter.”
Jesus had declared Himself to be “The Way, The Truth and The Life” in John 14:6: “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”
Repentance Meaning in the Bible
Through His death and resurrection, He opened up “a new and living way” for those who trust and follow Him, according to Hebrews 10:20: “By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh;”
And “He left us an example that we should follow in His step” as we walk with Him on this Way of Life, according to 1 Peter 2:21: “For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:”
The Christianity Jesus founded is a way of living. It’s The Way of Life.
Recorded in this passage in the Book of The Acts of the Apostles is the model or pattern, which the Holy Spirit established in the early Church as The Way of Life for the Christian. Namely:
- Repentance and faith toward God
- Baptism
- Receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit
But also recorded in this passage is the model or pattern, which the Holy Spirit established in the early Church as The Way of Life for the Church. Acts 2, verse 37 reads: “Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?”
In verses 38 through 40, it tells us that what the Holy Spirit had the early church to do was:
- Repent
- Be baptized
- Receive the gift of the Holy Spirit
And being assured of their salvation, they then continued steadfastly and devoted themselves to:
- The apostles’ teaching
- Fellowship
- The breaking of bread
- Prayer
And then, verses 41 through 47 tells us that:
- Thousands of people were added to the church
- A holy reverence came over the whole church
- Signs and wonders took place
- There was unprecedented giving
- The church was united, being of one heart and mind
- Their fellowship was sincere, intimate and happy
- The church was praising God
- The church had favor in the community
- And, daily, the Lord added more people to the church
An Introduction to Repentance
From the above, we see that one aspect of The Way is to “repent.” Repentance is the title of this message. I have other messages and booklets on various aspects of The Way of Life. In this particular message, I will focus on what it means to repent.
It is written in the Gospel of Matthew (3:1-2) that John the Baptist came preaching “in the wilderness of Judaea, And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” And, if you turn the page in the same Gospel, you can read that after Jesus was baptized by John in the river Jordan, and subsequently led into the wilderness by the Spirit to be tempted by the devil, he too began to preach saying in Matthew 4:17: “Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
“Repent” – this was Jesus’ and John’s opening statement – their “trumpet call” concerning the kingdom of heaven. This says to me that this concept of repentance is an important aspect of the kingdom of heaven.
It was the same with the Christ’s apostles: At the end of the apostle Peter’s sermon on the day of Pentecost, the Book of Acts tells us that people were “pierced to the heart,” and asked Peter and the rest of the apostles what they must do to be saved. Peter’s opening statement, giving the first step in the salvation process in Acts 2:37-38, was: “Repent.”
- Acts 2:37-38: “Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”
We see the same thing with another apostle who began preaching the gospel of Christ a little later – the apostle Paul. And I have chosen something Paul said about repentance as our foundational text in this message, because I believe this particular passage has a lot to offer with regards to communicating the essence of this all important concept of repentance. That passage is Acts chapter 26, verses 18-20.
- Acts 26:18: “To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.”
- Acts 26:19: “Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision:”
- Acts 26:20: “But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.”
The Context
As a consequence of preaching the Gospel, Paul had been brought before the Sanhedrin, the governors Felix and Festus, and then before King Agrippa. In Paul’s defense before king Agrippa, he gave the testimony of his conversion to Christ on the road to Damascus; and in the specific verses we have cited here, Paul is speaking of the Lord’s call on his life to preach the Gospel.
The subject matter is “repentance”, because preaching repentance is part and parcel of preaching the Gospel. Luke, who recorded the Books of Acts, also wrote in his Gospel that Jesus commissioned His apostles saying in Luke 24:47: “And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.”
“Repentance” is, in fact, a pre-requisite to receiving the benefits of the Gospel. We must acknowledge the reality of our sin before we can receive the forgiveness of sin. As I have heard it said: “You must acknowledge the ‘bad news’ before you can appreciate the ‘good news.” And the “bad news”, as it were, is that because, according to Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
We all need to repent. But, what does it mean to “repent”?
Repentance: A Godly Sorrow
Possibly, you already have an understanding of “repentance” as a “godly sorrow.” This is not really wrong; but more accurately, the Scriptures tells us that “a godly sorrow produces repentance.” See 2 Corinthians 7:10: “For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.”
This is the conviction of the Spirit of God – convincing us of our sin, and God’s righteousness and judgment, according to John 16:8: “And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:” Such working of the Holy Spirit brings us to the place of being open and able to change our perceptions of things – being open and able to allow the Spirit of Truth to give us understanding of the things of God.
So, “godly sorrow” certainly is a part of repentance; but I also want us to see the heart of repentance.
Repentance: A Change in Behavior and Lifestyle
Possibly, you already have an understanding of “repentance” as a change of behavior for the good – changing from a sinful lifestyle to a godly lifestyle. Again, this is not wrong – this is part of “repentance” – maybe the second part, as it were – what the Scriptures call the “fruits of repentance” – a phrase I’ll mention again later, but that can be seen in Matthew 3:8, Luke 3:8, and Acts 26:20:
- Matthew 3:8: “Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance:”
- Luke 3:8: “Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance, and begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, That God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.”
- Acts 26:20: “But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.”
But indeed, when there is a genuine inward change of repentance, there naturally follow visible outward changes in our behavior and lifestyle. This too is certainly part of repentance, but I also want us to see the heart of repentance.
The Essential Meaning of Repentance: A Change of Mind/Perception/Understanding
The passage of Scripture with which we are dealing begins by saying that The Lord sent Paul to the Gentiles to “open their eyes.” Let’s meditate for a moment on that phrase – to “open their eyes.” We are familiar with phrases of similar meaning: “to see the light,” to “be enlightened”, etc. The meaning is to somehow come to an understanding of something. I believe that this is the essential meaning of the term “repentance” as it is used in the New Testament.
The Greek word translated “repent” is: metanoeo – a combination of two words – meta meaning “change,” and noeo, meaning “mind,” or “perception” or “understanding.” Editor’s note: We used the New Strong’s Expanded Exhaustive Concordance and Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary.
“Repentance” is coming to a change of mind – a change in our perception and understanding of God, ourselves and life. Let’s listen carefully to Paul’s words to another group of non-believers of the Areopagus in Athens, he said in Acts 17:30: “And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:”
There is a connection to be made between “ignorance” and “repentance.” If you notice, Paul is tactfully telling the philosophers on Mars Hill that they were “ignorant” of the things of God, and that God was now calling for them to change their perception and gain understanding of the things of God – that is, He was calling them to “repent.”
But I don’t want to give you the impression that this enlightened understanding which comes with repentance is only for philosopher types. No, this essential meaning of the term “repentance” is also clearly seen in the words of the apostle Peter which he spoke to common people at Solomon’s Porch after the healing of a lame man at the gate of the temple in Jerusalem. See Acts 3:17-19:
- Acts 3:17: “And now, brethren, I wot that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers.”
- Acts 3:18: “But those things, which God before had shewed by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled.”
- Acts 3:19: “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;”
Again, we see an ignorance of the things of God, and a preaching of the truth of Christ that calls for, and has the power to effect, a change of perception which gives a new understanding of the things of God. Repentance is, in fact, a change of perception that enables us to see things from God’s point of view. Yes, the Spirit of Truth (see John 14:17, 15:26, 16:13) has the power to change and enlighten our hearts and minds (see Hebrews 14:12) to see Him, to see ourselves, to see everything in life from His point of view – to see things as they really are – in truth and in reality.
This is the heart of repentance – seeing from God’s point of view. Listen to the beginning of Paul’s wonderful prayer for the Church in his letter to the Colossians – I quote here from Colossians 1:9: “For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding;”
Seeing from God’s point of view – this is the heart of repentance.
As I said earlier, when this inward change is genuine, there are manifested visible outward changes in our behavior and lifestyle – the Scripture refers to these as “fruits of repentance.” When John the Baptist came preaching repentance, he demanded that the Pharisees and Sadducees “bear fruit in keeping with repentance.” What are these “fruits of repentance”?
The Fruits of Repentance: Turning From/Turning To/Returning
Let’s read from our main Scripture reference once more – Acts 26:18 & 20:
- Acts 26:18: “To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.”
- Acts 26:20b: “that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.”
“Fruits of repentance” are simply the things that follow repentance – the results of repentance. Paul’s preaching and teaching ministry was to “open their eyes” – that is, change their perception and understanding – “so that” – in other words, the result would be that – “they may turn.” “Turning” is a “fruit of repentance.”
“Turning” from something and “turning” to something, or Someone. In this particular passage, Paul specified “turning from darkness to light” – “turning from the dominion of Satan to God” – “that they should repent” – from the things of the world, the flesh and the devil, “and turn to God” – and the things of God – to “deeds appropriate to repentance.”
Peter specified some of those “deeds appropriate to repentance” at the end of that sermon he gave on the day of Pentecost – he said in Acts 2:38: “Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.” These things are, on the one hand, acts of obedience on our part after repentance, and on the other hand, gifts of God that follow after repentance.
The apostle Peter also said in Acts 3:19: “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;” Turning from”, “turning to”, but also “returning” follows repentance. A fruit of repentance for the Christian is to “return” to the Lord.
You see, repentance doesn’t happen just once when you first come to Christ – it’s an ongoing process even after we come to Christ. It is part of the normal Christian life, and should be part of the normal Christian church life – a continuous process of repenting and returning to the Lord.
In the Book of Revelation, Jesus instructs the churches to “repent” (see Revelation 2:5, 16, 3:3, and 19):
- Revelation 2:5: “Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.”
- Revelation 2:16: “Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.”
- Revelation 3:3: “Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.”
- Revelation 3:19: “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.”
Peter was instructing the people of God to “repent and return.” Why? So that “times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.” The instruction is to return from living independently of the Lord to abiding in the Lord – and when we “repent and return,” we find the Lord’s presence in our lives and churches in a fresh and deeper way.
And through the continuous process of “repenting and returning,” we are restored and built up in the Holy Spirit so that the Church may continue on in the Father’s awesome plans and purposes right up to the return of the Son as the Bible says in Acts 3:20-21: “And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.”
In this sense, we might say that repentance and returning are linked with abiding. Returning to the Lord to abide in Him – to look at life and live life from His point of view – these are “fruits of repentance.” In this regard, let us remember the words of Jesus in John 15:4-5: “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.”
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